As most of us know, Jeff Schapiro is one of the most knowledgeable, erudite, and entertaining Virginia political reporters/columnists around. And no, that's not a backhanded compliment. :) Seriously, Jeff's great at what he does. And this Friday, you have a chance to see him in person, as he speaks to the Northern Virginia Democratic Business Council, bright and early (7:30 a.m.) at the Tower Club in Vienna.

How will the elections shape the upcoming legislative session? And what about next year's statewide races? Jeff will address these questions and more. You won't want to miss his analysis.

As usual, Jeff Schapiro nails it. This time, the question is, how's Bob McDonnell going to wriggle out of policy and political disaster thanks to his poorly-conceived, half-baked ABC privatization "plan?" Right now, he might just be better off drowning his sorrows -- with a bottle of state-regulated wine or liquor, perhaps?

Another great video diary by Jeff Schapiro of the Richmond Times-Dispatch. In this one, Schapiro explains that "Gov. Bob McDonnell wants to get the state out of the liquor business, but not everyone thinks it's a good idea." Actually, after watching this video, my question is whether anyone other than Bob McDonnell thinks it's a good idea. That, in turn, raises an important question: when it comes to this harebrained liquor privatization scheme, what exactly is Bob McDonnell drinking, anyway?